Gypsy or side curtain for automobile or side tops



S. G. SPURLING. GIPSY 0R SIDE CURTAIN FOR AUTOMOBILE 0R SIDE TOPS.

1,417,866. Q APPLICATION FILED OCT. 5. I921. Patented May 30, 1922' 2 SHEETSSHEET l.

S. G. SPUBUNG- GIPSY OR SIDE cumm FOR AUTOMOBILE 0R sms TOPS. 1,417,866.

nmw v 2 w 4 ML mu 7 0 w? 3 Wm mm ,N m J m APPLICATION FILED 06125, 1-92!- UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

SIDNEY G. SPURLI'NGLOF PORTLAND, OREGON.

Application. filed. October 5,

T 0 all whom. it may concern.

. Be it known that I. Ehnmrr G. QPURLING, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of Portland, county of Multilemah, and State of Oregon, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Gypsy or Side Curtains for Automobile or Side Tops, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to the tops of automobiles, and has for its object the providing of gypsy, or side curtains for the back of the top, which are provided with extension pieces, adapted to be arranged in either one of two ways, namely; folded out of sight, or extended to provide a more extensiv weather screen, according to the degree of protection desired from the weather. In this respect my invention combines appearance with utility.

At the present time the gypsy, or side curtain usually consists of a side piece receding diagonally from the bottom to the top, thus giving the'appearance illustrated by Fig. 2 of the accompanying drawings. iangement of these gypsy curtains aitords an unobstructed view. But in severer weather it may be desirable to arrange the gypsy curtain as illustrated by Fig. l in the drawings. In that event an extension must be provided to enclose the space between the sides of the front and back top bows.

At present the enclosing pieces are com monly extra pieces, stowed away when not in use, and which must first be taken out of their receptacle, and then secured in place. Such operations, of course, consume some time; and frequently, it is more or less an awkward operation.

By my invention the extension piece of each gypsy curtain is always attached along one side to the main part, or body, oi: the gypsy curtain; and when not needed is merely folded inward and back into a smaller form, and stowed away in a pocket provided on the interior of said main part of the gypsy curtain. Hence the extension piece is always in place;and when weather conditions do not require its use it may be readily arranged out of sight, and thus give the same effect, and affording the sameunobstructed view as in constructions where the extension piece is detachable from the main part, or body,- of the gypsy curtain.

A further feature of my invention is to provide a window in the extension piece of ouch ar- Specification of Letters Patent. Patented lflay 30, 1922,

1921. Serial No. 505,669.

the gypsy curtain; the window being secured by a frame to the extension. and the latter providing aguide for the folding of said extension piece into the form permitting its insertion into its pocket; and the window being preferably made of a piece of glass of substantial thickness, so that it will not easily break, and its weight constitutes Details. of this construction are readily observed in Figure 10. Glove fasteners are attached to top how a on the inside and the told. is made around them instead of around bOW. I I

J The arrangement and operation, of my invention are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 shows 1a side elevation of the rear portion of an automobile body and top, the latter being provided with gypsy curtains embodying my invention Fig. 2 illustrates a similar view as Fig. 1 with the QXtGIlSlOII oit' the gypsy curtain folded back and inward and arran 'ed out of the way, thus giving the same effect as now given by the ordinary gypsy curtain;

Fig. 8 shows one of my improved gypsy curtains spread out. As here shown the gypsy curtain is a separate piece from the back curtain;

Fig. '4; shows the extension of my gypsy curtain partly folded back and inward upon the main part of the gypsy curtain;

.Fig. 5 shows the second folding of the extension of m'ygypsy curtain thus reducing the extension to the form required for inserting in the pocket provided on the inner side of the main part of the gypsy curtain;

Fig. 6 illustrates the extension of my gypsy. curtain as having been folded'back and inward,- and the folded part inserted n the pocket in similar manner as shown in Fig. 2

Fig. 7 is a fragmental interior view of one side of the back of the top, showing the extension of my gypsy curtain folded back and inserted in the pocket so as to give the appearance shown by Figs. 2 and 6;

y Fig. 8 illustrates that my improved'gypsy curtains may constitute integral parts of the back curtain of the top;

Fig. 9 is an interior perspective View of one corner of the vehicle top, the latter cn1- prising a back curtain having integral gypsy curtains embodying my invention; and

Fig. 10 is identical with Fig. 1 except that the curtain is on the inside of the bow at.

Referring again tov Fig. 1: a and b designate the back and front bowsv of thetop. The gypsy curtain is assumed to be constructed as shown in' Fig. 8'. The main body 0 of the gypsy curtain is fastened: to the back curtain cl and also to the back bow a. e is the extension piece of the gypsy curtain 0 and it is adapted to be fastened along the top to the bottom. edgeof the top cover 7. The extension piece e is provided with a window frame 9 in which is secured I a window h. The window frame gispreferably so located as shown for example in Figs. 3 to 5 inclusive that the right vertical frame part provides a guide for foldingthe forward section of the extension .e back and inward upon itself along a line indicated by the broken line 2', thereby arranging the extension in the formin which it is shown in Fig. 4; and the upperright hand corner of the window frame 9 having reference to Figs. 3 to 5 providinga guide for making the final diagonal fold on the broken line j thereby arranging the: extension of the gypsy curtain to the form shown.

by Fig. 5. On the interior of the main part 0 of the gypsy frame is provided a pocket 7r: adapted to receive the extension e when folded in the manner illustrated by Fig. 5. When the frame of the top is of the con: struction illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2 the extension 6 would be'lapped over the side piece of the back top bow as illustrated in Fig. 6 and the folded extension iece e being then inserted in the pocket, as more clearly illustrated by Fig. 7.

As already mentioned, the window h is preferably made of a piece of heavy glass so that its weight will have a tendency to secure the folded extension piece a in its pocket against inadvertently being pulled out by a sharp gust of wind. In this connection the heavy window plate is to broadly designate some means as may be preferred for securing the folded extension 0 in its pocket it. Another means to prevent thefolded portion from being pulled out is by attaching a strap from-the; bow

to the mouth of the pocket as per m in Fig. 7. i

' The window h and its frame 9 also function to add some stiffness to the extension 6 when folded and arranged as shown in F ig. 5 and in this way also contributing to and thesecuring of the folded extension in its pocket.

The extension 6 should always be joined to or constitute a part of the main piece of the gypsy curtain whether the latter be a detachable piece as shown in Fig. 3 for example, or be integral with the top piece of the back curtains as shown in Figs. 8 and 9. The purpose of making the extension 0 a permanent part of the body of the gypsy curtain is that the extension will never disconnect and since the extension is always attached along one edge to the main body part 0' of the gypsy curtain it can readily be taken out of its pocket and spread out as shown in Fig. 1 and as readily folded back out of the way as'shown in Fig. 2.

Where a fastening device, such as a strap -m, is used for securing the folded. extension e in place in the pocket, the glass window in the frame 9 in theextension may be of celluloid or other suitable transparent material.

I claim: 1. In a vehicle top comprising front and back topbows and top cover, the combina-' its insertion in said pocket.

2. Claim 1 distinguished in that the ex tension piece is provided with a weight to hold it in its said pocket.

3'. Claim 1 distinguished in that the extension piece is provided with a window and a frame containing the same, the frame providing a guide for the folding of said extension piece into the form permitting its insertion in its said pocket.

4;. Claim 1 distinguished in that the extension piece is provided with a window glass'and a frame securing thelatter in place; the frame providing a guide for the folding of said extension piece into the form permitting its insertion in its pocket, and the glass being of substantial weight so as to tend to hold the folded extension piece in its pocket.

5-. The combination set forth in claim 1 including means for holding the folded extension piece in the pocket.

SIDNEYG. SPURLING. 

